Jim Hines talks about bad con behavior. Blowing off people is so totally wrong, however I've done it, but not because I was looking for someone better but that I just didn't understand what the heck I was doing and what I should be doing at cons. But here's something I learned, say hi to everybody. Talk with everybody you're introduced to. When I met a BNA, within a few minutes he had introduced me to another 12 people, 10 of which I had no idea who they were. All ten of those people have turned out to be fascinating individuals who are also somewhat important people right at this moment. When Dave Klecha introduced me to Mer Haskel I had no idea who she was. Since then she's been one of the more important people in my writing career. And did I mention Dave's recent success as well, not to mention his connections within the writing industry. When I see them at cons I always say hello. Not because Mer and Dave are now important people, but because they're fun people. BTW, Jim Hines was one of those ten people John Scalzi introduced me to. And I also love catching up with Jim when I see him at cons.

Neurocysticercosis, one of the less common but growing complications involving tape worms. Did you know that in the US they once sold tape worm eggs as a weight loss solution? And not all that long ago. (Grokked from Matt Staggs)

And in other news, it's estimated the healthcare industry wastes $750b a year. Fortunately, none of that is on fax machines or technicians to maintain and watch them. "More than 18 months in the making, the report identified six major areas of waste: unnecessary services ($210 billion annually); inefficient delivery of care ($130 billion); excess administrative costs ($190 billion); inflated prices ($105 billion); prevention failures ($55 billion), and fraud ($75 billion). Adjusting for some overlap among the categories, the panel settled on an estimate of $750 billion." Note that fraud is second to last, but normally gets the lion share of blame for "cutting healthcare costs" (although that low number may be because it's been such a focus for the past three decades). There's some stuff I disagree with in there, for my own reasons, but there it is. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Apparently, not only does Mitt Romney feel we solved the Cold Fusion problem but he also hasn't heard of the Nissan Leaf or Honda's Fit EV or FCX, or Mitsubushi's i-MiEV, or… Usually a president has to be in office before we find out they're amazed by bar code technology. Of course, this could be another of the "$10,000 bet" blind spots. Tesla does, after all, make nice toys for millionaires.

Turns out one of those "breaking up with Obama ad" people is a RNC staffer who has worked on previous republican campaigns. "But let’s be clear, it is an ad." Let's make sure we all understand what the RNC official means by that; they're lying, you can't expect ads to tell the truth. Reminds me of when the republicans were looking for "real" WV miners who would appear in their ads during the 2010 election. Sigh. But is seems like the republicans are congenitally unable to tell the truth. Somehow they think we should trust them with political office. It's the reverse of people saying, "politicians always lie to us." Now the conservative politicians are saying, "Hey, you think we're going to lie, and so we will lie to you." It's like when your dog poops on the rug just because they're upset with you. (Grokked from Jay Lake)

Ron Elving is talking about the stories we tell ourselves. Or as he aptly names them, the myths of our lives. And how these competing myths are what is defining the election. So it all depends on how you see yourself, a rugged individualist or part of a larger community. (Grokked from Matt Staggs)

About Me

I am a writer of Fantasy, Horror, and Science Fiction. Here you can find some of my thoughts about writing, politics, society, dreams, and anything that comes into my head. Sometimes I drop a Story Bone or two. And then there is the tweeting.

The opinions expressed on this blog are my own and should not be considered the opinions of my employers or clients.

Da Rules

Anything put in a post with the title "Story Bone" is up for grabs. If it sets off a story bomb in your head, go for it. I don't claim any right except to maybe write my own story based on the bone. I haven't researched the bones to make sure I'm not trodding on somebody else's toes so use at your own risk. Think of these as free ideas.

Freed Scribblings

The Company of Ravens - First Chapter This is the story that nearly killed me and forced me to start writing down these things in my head. It's still a draft. After innumeral edits this is still at the point I realized I needed more skills to tell the story, and also the point where I realized I could do this.

The Dead Are Busy Released from the trunk in celebration of the first International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day, April 23, 2007.

Storming Heaven This was the first short story I wrote that I felt was ready for publication. Released from the trunk in celebration of the second International Pixel-Stained Technopeasant Day, April 23, 2008.